Graypoint LLC Trims Stake in BlackRock, Inc. (NYSE:BLK)

Graypoint LLC lowered its stake in BlackRock, Inc. (NYSE:BLK) by 3.7% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 1,418 shares of the asset manager’s stock after selling 55 shares during the quarter. Graypoint LLC’s holdings in BlackRock were worth $1,454,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. FSA Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of BlackRock during the 3rd quarter worth $26,000. Fairscale Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of BlackRock during the 2nd quarter worth $31,000. Reston Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of BlackRock during the 3rd quarter worth $37,000. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of BlackRock by 100.0% during the 3rd quarter. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 40 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares during the period. Finally, Addison Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of BlackRock by 81.5% during the 3rd quarter. Addison Advisors LLC now owns 49 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $47,000 after purchasing an additional 22 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.69% of the company’s stock.

BlackRock Stock Down 3.1 %

Shares of NYSE BLK opened at $955.50 on Friday. BlackRock, Inc. has a 12-month low of $745.55 and a 12-month high of $1,082.45. The company has a market cap of $147.99 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.58, a P/E/G ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 1.28. The company has a current ratio of 5.06, a quick ratio of 5.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $1,030.97 and a 200 day moving average price of $939.26.

BlackRock (NYSE:BLK) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, October 11th. The asset manager reported $11.46 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $10.42 by $1.04. BlackRock had a return on equity of 15.52% and a net margin of 31.37%. The firm had revenue of $5.20 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.03 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $10.91 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 14.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts anticipate that BlackRock, Inc. will post 43.18 EPS for the current fiscal year.

BlackRock Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 23rd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, December 5th were given a $5.10 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, December 5th. This represents a $20.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.14%. BlackRock’s payout ratio is currently 50.35%.

Insider Buying and Selling at BlackRock

In other BlackRock news, Director Mark Wiedman sold 36,190 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, December 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,045.90, for a total value of $37,851,121.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 6,480 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,777,432. This represents a 84.81 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, COO Robert L. Goldstein sold 54,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,046.03, for a total transaction of $56,485,620.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 41,916 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $43,845,393.48. The trade was a 56.30 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.90% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have weighed in on BLK. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their price target on BlackRock from $1,105.00 to $1,133.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, November 11th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on BlackRock from $1,200.00 to $1,155.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on BlackRock from $864.00 to $914.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, October 21st. StockNews.com began coverage on BlackRock in a report on Wednesday. They set a “hold” rating for the company. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on BlackRock from $1,245.00 to $1,261.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, December 20th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, BlackRock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $1,070.08.

BlackRock Profile

BlackRock, Inc is a publicly owned investment manager. The firm primarily provides its services to institutional, intermediary, and individual investors including corporate, public, union, and industry pension plans, insurance companies, third-party mutual funds, endowments, public institutions, governments, foundations, charities, sovereign wealth funds, corporations, official institutions, and banks.